DAEMON Tools is a virtual drive emulator program, as well as CD/DVD disc burning, that creates virtual disc drives on the computer’s hard drives using a software method, perceived by the computer as actually installed. This allows CD/DVD disc images to be used as if they were written on a physical disc by a real CD-ROM.
The free Russian version of DAEMON Tools also provides disc image creation in several different formats for later use by this or another similar program. Supports bypassing copy protection of StarForce, SecuROM, Laserlock, Protect CD, CDCOPS, and many others. The SCSI PassThrough Direct (SPTD) layer is used for emulation.
DAEMON Tools allows the creation of about 32 virtual SCSI and 4 IDE drives (IDE only in the Pro Advanced version), which are used to mount disc images. Typically, virtual drives are used to increase data transfer speeds and reduce physical wear of playback devices and storage media.
The program has a large number of specialized functions that allow interaction with various image files. This is required in a number of cases, primarily after downloading games, programs, or operating systems in image format from the internet. It is not possible to simply open such a format; it is recommended to mount it to a virtual drive.
In this case, simulation of a physical drive along with autorun is achieved. Some applications, especially games, are programmed in such a way that they cannot work without a disc, even if they are already installed on the computer. DAEMON Tools bypasses this limitation.
The advantage of the application lies in the ability to interact with images differently: instead of mounting them, you can simply extract the needed file. This is achieved through real-time file processing, similar to a rar archive.
Key controls are located in the menu at the center of the program. Here you can add a new image to the application, which is done via Explorer, or conversely remove an existing image from the catalog. The button with a triangle symbol starts mounting the image to a virtual drive.
After the procedure is completed, either an autorun window will open, or a folder with files will simply open. The stop button removes the image from the drive, and the next button allows unmounting all images at once.
Program features:
To perform device mounting, a virtual drive is first created; there are 2 options – DT and SCSI. Removal is performed by clicking on the drive icon with a red cross.
DAEMON Tools provides the ability not only to work with an image, but also to create one from a DVD or CD drive. This allows extracting even protected applications, drivers, or games from the disc.
From the application menu, you can start burning data to a disc, but this requires an additional program. If it is not installed on the system, the icon will be inactive.
The application has a minimum number of settings; in reality, there is nothing to configure here, as there are no frills. However, it is convenient to create hotkeys for mounting or other procedures.
DAEMON Tools has a Lite version – this is a free program with all necessary functions for an ordinary user. There is also a paid Pro version, which adds several auxiliary features.
- nrg (Nero)
- cue/bin
- pdi (Instant CD/DVD)
- ape (Monkey’sAudio)
- cdi (Discjuggler)
- ccd (CloneCD)
- iso (ISO image)
- bwt (Blindwrite)
- flac (FLAC)
- b6t (BlindWr 6)
- b5t (BlindWr 5)
- mdx (MediaData eXt)
- mdf/mds (Media Descriptor File)
- isz (Compressed ISO images) UltraISO
This table shows the difference in functionality between the Pro and Light (free version of the emulator) versions.
Difference between Daemon Tools Lite and other emulator programs
Program guide
